The Columbus Crew have earned continental silverware for the first time in the club's storied history, winning the Campeones Cup with a 2-0 victory over Cruz Azul on Wednesday night at Lower.com Field.
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Jonathan Mensah's 74th-minute header sealed the victory for Columbus, which had never previously been beyond the quarterfinals of a Concacaf competition, after Lucas Zelarayan's tantalizing free kick resulted in an own-goal that put the Crew in front after four minutes.
Columbus becomes the second consecutive MLS team to win the three-year-old competition after Atlanta United defeated Club America 3-2 in 2019. The trophy between the defending MLS Cup champion and Mexico's defending Campeon de Campeones winner was not contested in 2020.
Cruz Azul hoarded the ball and held 74% of possession, but struggled to convert it to consistent chances. Their best stretch came in the opening minutes of the second half, when Jonathan Rodriguez fired well over the crossbar on a wide-open chance in 47th minute and Juan Escobar struck the right post five minutes later.
In the dying moments, the partisan Columbus crowd reminded the Mexico City-based side of other American victories over Mexican opponents in the Ohio capital with a "dos-a-cero!" chant ringing out from the Nordecek behind the north goal.
